1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for carrying an information recording medium for an information recording and reproducing apparatus for recording information on a recording medium and/or reproducing information from a recording medium.
2. Related Background Art
Heretofore, there have been an electromagnetic system and an optical system for an information recording and reproducing apparatus, and particularly in recent years, the optical system has been given much attention. For an information recording/reproducing apparatus using a light beam, there is the CD in which a disc type recording medium is rotated, the video disc using an optical disc and a photomagnetic disc, the optical card which performs the reciprocating travel of a card type recording medium, and some other apparatus such as using an optical tape. These apparatuses are used appropriately depending on the purposes, but among them, the optical card is particularly attracting attention because of its desirable portability. For the use of the optical card as an information recording medium, there is known among the various methods which have hitherto been designed, a method in which a light beam is irradiated on an optical card and the irradiating position of the light beam is linearly moved, and is further moved relatively in the direction perpendicular to the direction of the linear movement, that is, in the direction intersecting the information track of the optical card.
For a conventional method of this kind, there is known a method illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 4. FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a first conventional example, in which a stacker, that is, a card base 2, movably supported in the direction X along rails 1a and 1b is arranged to cause an optical card C inserted from its side to be fixed on the circumference thereof from above by compression of flat springs 3a and 3b of a card pressing member 3. The feed rollers 4a and 4b which are provided for inserting the optical card C into the card base 2 are rotatively driven by a motor 6 through a driving shaft 5 to feed the optical card C. In order to feed the optical card C to a butting portion 2a of the card base 2, cut-out portions 3c and 3d are provided on the card pressing member 3 so as to arrange the feed rollers 4a and 4b in these cut-out portions 3c and 3d. The motor 6 and the driving shaft 5 can be moved vertically by driving with a spring 9 and a solenoid 10 having a movable iron core 8 fixed to one end of a member 7, which is rotatively mounted on a shaft 7a.
FIGS. 2A through 2C are cross-sectional views taken along the line I--I in FIG. 1. FIG. 2A illustrates the state when the optical card C is being inserted into the card base 2. FIG. 2B illustrates the state when the feed rollers 4a and 4b serving as a carrier system are raised from the card stand 2. FIG. 2C illustrates the state when the optical card C is being ejected from the card base 2. When the optical card C is carried to the butting portion 2a of the card base 2 by the feed rollers 4a and 4b to position the optical card C on the card base 2, the motor is stopped, and further, the feed rollers 4a and 4b are raised by the solenoid 10 to release them from the carrying state of the optical card C. The optical card C thus positioned on the card base 2 is releaved from this feeding system and is allowed to perform the linearly reciprocating movement together with the card base 2 for recording/reproducing.
Subsequent to the recording/reproducing, the motor 6 is reversely rotated while the solenoid 10 is caused to lower the feed rollers 4a and 4b so that the optical card C can enter the carrier system to be ejected by the feed rollers 4a and 4b.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a second conventional example in which feed rollers 13a and 13b, and 13c and 13d are mounted on parallel shafts 11a and 11b which are arranged vertically to face each other to pinch the optical card C for inserting the optical card C into the card stand 12. In this conventional example, the length of the traveling direction of the card base 12 is made shorter than the length of the longitudinal direction of the optical card C in order to allow the optical card C to be inserted to the butting portion 12a of the card base 12, and the feed rollers 13a through 13d are arranged at that position. As shown in FIG. 4A, which is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II--II in FIG. 3, the optical card C is pinched by the feed rollers 13a through 13d to be fed into the card base 12. At this juncture, the optical card C is inserted while being biased by a pressing member 14 so as to be in parallel with a pressing plane 15. Then, when the optical card C is butted to the butting portion 12a of the card base 12, its positioning is terminated. When the optical card C is positioned, the feed rollers 13a and 13b, and 13c and 13d are respectively moved vertically as shown in FIG. 4B to release the carrier system from the optical card C. Thereafter, as in the case of the first conventional example, the recording/reproducing is conducted and then as shown in FIG. 4C, the optical card is ejected.
However, there is a common disadvantage given below in the mechanism using the above-mentioned feed rollers. In other words, in the first conventional example, it is impossible to press the optical card C sufficiently because the pressing member 3 to compress the optical card C is partially cut off, and the camber of the optical card C and the like cannot be removed to result in a considerable deviation of the optical card C in recording/reproducing. Accordingly, there is a drawback that errors tend to occur in recording/reproducing using an optical head. Also, in the second conventional example, the optical card C is partially positioned out of the card base 12, which results in the same kind of drawback as in the first conventional example.
Then, in either example of the conventional apparatus, the feed rollers for carrying the optical card C are arranged near the card base in such a feed roller mechanism to interfere with its linearly reciprocating movement. Therefore, when the optical card C is fed into the card base, the feed rollers should be retracted immediately after the optical card C has been positioned so that the feed rollers are parted from the card base. To this end, it is required to cause the rotation of the feed rollers to be stopped accurately and reliably immediately before the retraction and also to prevent any slippage of the optical card C and feed rollers. However, it is extremely difficult to comply with these requirements, and the setting precision of the optical card tends to become irregular. As a result, there is encountered a problem that the positions at which to start writing become irregular. Also, the feed rollers should be in contact with the card base and reversed to exhaust the optical card. This results in an intermittent motion and makes it difficult to shorten the operation time.
With the conventional mechanism which has draw-backs described above, it is difficult to perform an accurate positioning in a short period for recording/reproducing while attempting to make the information recording pits super-fine as currently practiced for storing many pieces of information in one optical card.